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Clean Power Plan Foes Urge ‘Pencils Down' After Stay

Turn to the nation's most objective and informative
daily environmental news resource to learn how the United States and key
players around the world are responding to the environmental...

By Andrew Childers

Feb. 12 — States should drop plans to comply with the Clean Power Plan and “put their pencils down” after the carbon dioxide standards were stayed by the U.S. Supreme Court, opponents leading the fight against the rule said in a letter to state regulators.

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey and
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton told the National Association of
Clean Air Agencies and the National Association of Regulatory
Utility Commissioners in the Feb. 12 letter that states are under
no obligations to continue their work on compliance measures for
the Clean Power Plan, which would have been due to the EPA on Sept.
6, prior to the Supreme Court's unprecedented decision.

“If public officials in states wish to spend
taxpayer money voluntarily to comply with the rule—even though it
likely will never go into effect and even if upheld, will have
extended deadlines—that is, of course, their decision,” the
attorneys general said. “But there should be no mistake about that.
The decisions by state officials to move ‘forward' in preparing for
a stayed and likely-unlawful Power Plan are not required or
compelled by the Power Plan or any of its presently-void
deadlines.”

The letter comes after EPA Administrator Gina
McCarthy told the state regulators Feb. 11 that the agency will
continue to support any voluntary state efforts to prepare for
eventual compliance with the Clean Power Plan (RIN 2060-AR33),
which sets limits on carbon dioxide emissions from the power sector
in each state (28 ECR, 2/11/16).

“The result of the stay is clear: the Power Plan has
no legal effect whatsoever during the entire judicial review
process,” the attorneys general said. “In granting the stay, the
Supreme Court considered whether the Power Plan is likely unlawful
and whether it is causing irreparable harm now. We believe the
court's decision to grant the stay for the duration of the
litigation—including any Supreme Court review—means that the
states, their agencies and EPA should put their pencils down. Any
taxpayers dollars spent during the judicial review process are
unnecessary and likely to be entirely wasted.”

Foes Issue ‘Stop Work'
Orders

The American Energy Alliance, the advocacy arm of the Institute for Energy Research, also urged states to halt their compliance efforts, sending a series of “Stop Work Orders” to governors and environmental regulators.

Some states such as Alabama have already halted
their compliance efforts in the wake of the Supreme Court's
decision while others like Colorado are moving ahead in the event
the rule is ultimately upheld, fearing delays now would leave the
state at a disadvantage later (27 ECR, 2/10/16).

However, Paxton and Morrisey argued those efforts
are unnecessary now because even if the Clean Power Plan is upheld,
the EPA would be forced to reset all of its compliance deadlines as
a result of the stay.

“It is also well-understood that in the unlikely
event that the Power Plan is ultimately upheld, EPA would be forced
to completely reset all Power Plan deadlines,” the letter
said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Andrew
Childers in Washington at achilders@bna.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Larry Pearl at lpearl@bna.com

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